ECON 1101

circular flow diagram

a diagram that views the economy as consisting of households and firms interacting in a goods and services market and a labor market

command economy

an economy where economic decisions are passed down from government authority and where the government owns the resources

division of labor

the way in which different workers divide required tasks to produce a good or service

economics

the study of how humans make choices under conditions of scarcity

economies of scale

when the average cost of producing each individual unit declines as total output increases

exports

products (goods and services) made domestically and sold abroad

fiscal policy

economic policies that involve government spending and taxes

globalization

the trend in which buying and selling in markets have increasingly crossed national borders

goods and services market

a market in which firms are sellers of what they produce and households are buyers

gross domestic product (GDP)

measure of the size of total production in an economy

imports

products (goods and services) made abroad and then sold domestically

labor market

the market in which households sell their labor as workers to business firms or other employers

macroeconomics

the branch of economics that focuses on broad issues such as growth, unemployment, inflation, and trade balance

market

interaction between potential buyers and sellers; a combination of demand and supply

market economy

an economy where economic decisions are decentralized, private individuals own resources, and businesses supply goods and services based on demand

microeconomics

the branch of economics that focuses on actions of particular agents within the economy, like households, workers, and business firms

monetary policy

policy that involves altering the level of interest rates, the availability of credit in the economy, and the extent of borrowing

private enterprise

system where private individuals or groups of private individuals own and operate the means of production (resources and businesses)

scarcity

when human wants for goods and services exceed the available supply

specialization

when workers or firms focus on particular tasks for which they are well-suited within the overall production process

theory/model

a representation of an object or situation that is simplified while including enough of the key features to help us understand the object or situation

traditional economy

typically an agricultural economy where things are done the same as they have always been done

underground economy

a market where the buyers and sellers make transactions in violation of one or more government regulations

allocative efficiency

when the mix of goods produced represents the mix that society most desires

budget constraint

all possible consumption combinations of goods that someone can afford, given the prices of goods, when all income is spent; the boundary of the opportunity set

comparative advantage

when a country can produce a good at a lower cost in terms of other goods; or, when a country has a lower opportunity cost of production

invisible hand

Adam Smith's concept that individuals' self-interested behavior can lead to positive social outcomes

law of diminishing marginal utility

as we consume more of a good or service, the utility we get from additional units of the good or service tends to become smaller than what we received from earlier units

law of diminishing returns

as we add additional increments of resources to producing a good or service, the marginal benefit from those additional increments will decline

marginal analysis

examination of decisions on the margin, meaning a little more or a little less from the status quo

normative statement

statement which describes how the world should be

opportunity cost

measures cost by what we give up/forfeit in exchange; opportunity cost measures the value of the forgone alternative

opportunity set

all possible combinations of consumption that someone can afford given the prices of goods and the individual’s income

positive statement

statement which describes the world as it is

production possibilities frontier (PPF)

a diagram that shows the productively efficient combinations of two products that an economy can produce given the resources it has available.

productive efficiency

when it is impossible to produce more of one good (or service) without decreasing the quantity produced of another good (or service)

sunk costs

costs that we make in the past that we cannot recover

utility

satisfaction, usefulness, or value one obtains from consuming goods and services

ceteris paribus

other things being equal

complements

goods that are often used together so that consumption of one good tends to enhance consumption of the other

consumer surplus

the extra benefit consumers receive from buying a good or service, measured by what the individuals would have been willing to pay minus the amount that they actually paid

deadweight loss

the loss in social surplus that occurs when a market produces an inefficient quantity

demand

the relationship between price and the quantity demanded of a certain good or service

demand curve

a graphic representation of the relationship between price and quantity demanded of a certain good or service, with quantity on the horizontal axis and the price on the vertical axis

demand schedule

a table that shows a range of prices for a certain good or service and the quantity demanded at each price

equilibrium

the situation where quantity demanded is equal to the quantity supplied; the combination of price and quantity where there is no economic pressure from surpluses or shortages that would cause price or quantity to change

equilibrium price

the price where quantity demanded is equal to quantity supplied

equilibrium quantity

the quantity at which quantity demanded and quantity supplied are equal for a certain price level

excess demand/shortage

at the existing price, the quantity demanded exceeds the quantity supplied; also called a shortage

excess supply/surplus

at the existing price, quantity supplied exceeds the quantity demanded; also called a surplus

factors of production/inputs

the resources such as labor, materials, and machinery that are used to produce goods and services; also called inputs

inferior good

a good in which the quantity demanded falls as income rises, and in which quantity demanded rises and income falls

law of demand

the common relationship that a higher price leads to a lower quantity demanded of a certain good or service and a lower price leads to a higher quantity demanded, while all other variables are held constant

law of supply

the common relationship that a higher price leads to a greater quantity supplied and a lower price leads to a lower quantity supplied, while all other variables are held constant

normal good

a good in which the quantity demanded rises as income rises, and in which quantity demanded falls as income falls

price

what a buyer pays for a unit of the specific good or service

price ceiling

a legal maximum price

price control

government laws to regulate prices instead of letting market forces determine prices

price floor

a legal minimum price

producer surplus

the extra benefit producers receive from selling a good or service, measured by the price the producer actually received minus the price the producer would have been willing to accept

quantity demanded

the total number of units of a good or service consumers are willing to purchase at a given price

quantity supplied

the total number of units of a good or service producers are willing to sell at a given price

shift in demand

when a change in some economic factor (other than price) causes a different quantity to be demanded at every price

shift in supply

when a change in some economic factor (other than price) causes a different quantity to be supplied at every price

social surplus/total surplus/economic surplus

the sum of consumer surplus and producer surplus

substitute

a good that can replace another to some extent, so that greater consumption of one good can mean less of the other

supply

the relationship between price and the quantity supplied of a certain good or service

supply curve

a line that shows the relationship between price and quantity supplied on a graph, with quantity supplied on the horizontal axis and price on the vertical axis

supply schedule

a table that shows a range of prices for a good or service and the quantity supplied at each price

Equilibrium changes: What happens when supply goes up?

Price decreases & quantity increases

Equilibrium changes: What happens when supply goes down?

price increases & quantity decreases

Equilibrium changes: What happens when demand goes up?

price & quantity increase

Equilibrium changes: What happens when demand goes down?

price and quantity decrease

behavioral economics

a branch of economics that seeks to enrich the understanding of decision-making by integrating the insights of psychology and by investigating how given dollar amounts can mean different things to individuals depending on the situation

budget constraint (or budget line)

shows the possible combinations of two goods that are affordable given a consumer’s limited income

consumer equilibrium

point on the budget line where the consumer gets the most satisfaction; this occurs when the ratio of the prices of goods is equal to the ratio of the marginal utilities.

diminishing marginal utility

the common pattern that each marginal unit of a good consumed provides less of an addition to utility than the previous unit

fungible

the idea that units of a good, such as dollars, ounces of gold, or barrels of oil are capable of mutual substitution with each other and carry equal value to the individual

income effect

a higher price means that, in effect, the buying power of income has been reduced, even though actual income has not changed; always happens simultaneously with a substitution effect

marginal utility

the additional utility provided by one additional unit of consumption

marginal utility per dollar

the additional satisfaction gained from purchasing a good given the price of the product; MU/Price

substitution effect

when a price changes, consumers have an incentive to consume less of the good with a relatively higher price and more of the good with a relatively lower price; always happens simultaneously with an income effect

total utility

satisfaction derived from consumer choices

accounting profit

total revenues minus explicit costs, including depreciation

average profit

profit divided by the quantity of output produced; also known as profit margin

average total cost

total cost divided by the quantity of output

average variable cost

variable cost divided by the quantity of output

constant returns to scale

expanding all inputs proportionately does not change the average cost of production

diminishing marginal productivity

general rule that as a firm employs more labor, eventually the amount of additional output produced declines

diseconomies of scale

the long-run average cost of producing output increases as total output increases

economic profit

total revenues minus total costs (explicit plus implicit costs)

economies of scale

the long-run average cost of producing output decreases as total output increases

explicit costs

out-of-pocket costs for a firm, for example, payments for wages and salaries, rent, or materials

factors of production (or inputs)

resources that firms use to produce their products, for example, labor and capital

firm

an organization that combines inputs of labor, capital, land, and raw or finished component materials to produce outputs.

fixed cost

cost of the fixed inputs; expenditure that a firm must make before production starts and that does not change regardless of the production level

fixed inputs

factors of production that can’t be easily increased or decreased in a short period of time

implicit costs

opportunity cost of resources already owned by the firm and used in business, for example, expanding a factory onto land already owned

long run

period of time during which all of a firm’s inputs are variable

long-run average cost (LRAC) curve

shows the lowest possible average cost of production, allowing all the inputs to production to vary so that the firm is choosing its production technology